Steam generator



Aug. 5 1924. 1,503,614

. w. E. TRAVERS STEAM GENERATOR vF'iled May 115, 1922 I5 Sheets-Sheet l VIIII M 2 MW 4 4u t, i l n n I h l. ,n h, f/.O MM 3 w, n EN A E M s m M m W. E. TRAVERS STEAM GENERATOR Filed May 13. 1922 Aug. 5. 1924.v www@ W. E. TRAVERS STEAM GENERATOR Filed May 15, 1922 I5 Sheets-Sheet 3 IIA/Wr W/LL/AM E. 77541/5155.

YM/@WWW Patented ug. 1924.

innata WXLLIM E. TRAVERS, 0F OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, ASSG-NOR 0F FRANK E. REYNOLDS, F PIEDMNT, CALIFGRNA.

ONE-FOURTH TO STEAM GENERATOR.

Application led May 13,

To all whom t may concern.

Be it known that l, WILLIAM E. TRAVERS,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Oakland, county of Alameda, and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Steam vGenerators, of

which the following is a specication.

This inventioni'elates to steam generators of the water tube type, and especially to a sectional generator adapted for portable use as in steam driven automobiles and the like.

The object of the present invention is to generally improve and simplify generators of the character described; to provide a gen- 5 erator consisting of a series of parallel sections alternately inclined in opposite directions and each section consisting of a series of superposed interspaced tubes supported between headers and welded thereto vto form integral sections; to provide a frame for the reception and support of the section and which frame permits elongation or expansion of the individual sections independently of each other and the frame; to provide a combined steam and water drum and a flexible and expansible connection between each section and a common return communicating with the drum. Further objects will hereinafter appear.

One form which my invention may assume is exemplilied` in the following description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which-` F ig. 1 is a perspective view of the generator showing a number of sections removed.

Fig. 2 isa detail view of a portion of one' endof one section. Fig. 3 is an end view of the generator.

Fig. 4 is a detail view of the combined water and steam drum showing the steam outlet pipe.

Fig. 5 -is an end view of the super-heater employeth Referring to the drawings in detail, and particularly to Figs. 1 and 3, a sectional type of water tube generator or boiler is shown, which consists of a plurality of sections of water tubes A and B alternately inclined in opposite directions and placed side by side.

The lower ends of the sections are connected with water drums 2 and 3 and these drums are in. turn connected with a combined water and steam drum C by means of a down-flow 5e pipe 4 and an intermediate connection 5.

1922. Serial No. 560,801,

The upper ends of the sections are con nected through expansible,flexibleV copper tubes 6 with return-flow pipes 7 and 8 disposed on each side of the'drum C, and these are 1n turn connected with a delivery pipe 9 which communicates with one end of the drum. The space belowthe sections' consists of a fire-box D, and disposed in the lower portion thereof is a burner E of suitable construction which directs the flame upwardly between the tubes..

The present invention involves several important features; the main purpose of the invention being to, provide a boiler or generator which is particularly adapted for portable use as in steam automobiles, tractors and the like. To this end it is obvious that steam must be quickly generated and that the tubes and the remaining structure will be subjected to rapid expansion and contraction, and that such expansion and contraction must be .permitted without strainingthe structure or the connections in any manner. The several sections indicated at A and B are supported by an angle iron frame, consisting of vertical legs 10, horizontal bars 11 and cross or connecting bars 12. The combined steam and water drum is centrally disposed between the frame sections and is supported by the cross bars 12. The individual tubular sections of the boilerare similarly supported by the frame Aand expansion and contraction of the tubular sections is permitted without in any way transferring strain to the frame or the connections formed between the sections and the drum C.

The construction of the individual sections also forms an important feature of the present invention. F or instance by referring to 'Figs 2 and 3, it will be. seen that each section consists of a pair of header tubes as shown at 14 and 15. The tube 15 is connected through a union 16 with the lowerl drum 3. The upper end of the header tube 15 is bent, as at 17, and it is then extended over to the opposite header tube 14, to which it is welded, as lat '18. The header tube 14 is connected through a union 19 with a U-shaped copper tube 6, which in turn is connected through a union 2O with the pipe 7. This connection is expansible and flexible and will function as hereinafter described. rlhe lower end of the header tube 14 is bent, as at 21, and it is then extended over to the opposite header tube 15, to which it is welded as at 22. The. lower end of the header tube 14 therefore forms the lowermost tube of a section, while the upper end of the header tube 15 ,forms the uppermost tube of a section. A series of tubes is then introduced between the upper tube 18 and the lower tube 22, and these tubes are welded to the respective headersas shown. In the present instance it will be seen that nine tubes are 'employed in each section yand that two of endwise expansion or elongation of the individual sections is provided, due to the ilexifble tube connection 6 shown, and also due to the fact that the upper bars V11 of the supporting frame are slotted, as at 23, ,toI

receive the header tubes 14 of the respective sections. They are thus freely movable in the slots and elongationor contraction can take place without transferring any strain to the frame or'any connected part.

By referring to Fig. 3 it will be seen that a small hole is formed in the nipple, which forms a connection betweenl the lower ends of the header tubes 15 and the drums 2 and 3. This is illustrated at. 24 and is of considerable importance as it prevents foaming in the drum C, that is the water contained in the ldrum C is permitted to flow freely through the down-flow tube 4 and through the cross tube 5 into the drums 2 and 3, but upward flow through the header tubes 15 is to a certain extent restricted'by the sizeof the communicating openings 24.

This restrictionis such that the water en-4 tering will all turn into steam before it discharges through the upper ends of the headers 14, the connection 6 and pipe 7 into the drum, and foaming is in this manner prevented; that is the area presented by the tubes in each section is so great that the water admitted through the openings 24 will all be evaporated before it can discharge or return to the drum.

The steam delivered to the drum is discharged through the pipe indicated at 25,

.see Figs. 4 and 5; it then passes through a throttle 26 of suitable construction, and is then directed into a super-heater section generally indicated at 27. This section consists of a pair of headers 28 and 29 and horizontally disposed connection tubes 30. The headers 28 and 29 and the tubes 30 are allwelded with relation to each other and an integral structure is here again formed. The discharging steam passes through these tubes and as a large area is presented, any degree 4of heat may be imparted to the steam to--superheat the same before it finally discharges through the pipe 31, which directs the steam to the engine or other unit driven thereby. The superheating section may be placed at either endvof the drum, but preferably at a point where it can be arranged to greatest advantage with relation to the burner E, this being in most instances at the rear end of the generator.

By again referring to Figs. 2 and 3, it will be seen that the header tubes 14 and 15 are provided with extensions 40 and that these are normally closed by screw plugs 41. This is an important feature as removal of the plugs at the opposite ends of the respective tubes permlts insertion of wire brushes, cleaning rods and the like, and each section may be readily cleaned from time to time.

Another important feature of the present invention is the provision of individual sections which may be readily removed without interfering with the remaining sections, that is each section is held in place by the unions 16 and 19. These unions when uncoupled entirely release a section and it may be thus entirely removed and replaced' by a new section, or the sunions 16 and 19 may vbe temporarily closed if it is desired to continue the operation of the boiler. The tubes in each section, .as shown in Fig. 3, are alternately inclined in opposite directions. They are disposed directly above the i fire-box D and as such present a mass of tubing which materially restricts the escape of the-dame or the products of combustion. This is also of importance as it prevents the fr e escape of the heat, or4 in other words ailles the escaping gases to such an extent as to absorb all the heat thereof before it can finally discharge. The inclining of thetubes as shown furthermore tends to spread the upwardly rising gases and `uniform heating of the tubes from end to end `is thus obtained. The water maybe introduced to the boiler by a feed pump, injector or any other suitable means, but as this forms no part of the present invention it is not illustrated. Gauges indicating pressure, and gauges for the purpose of indicating water4 level may be employed if desired. In the present instance an overflow ltube 50 is employed. This tube is provided with a pet-cock at its lower end and it is opened when the generator is being filled with water. flow or discharge through the tube 50 when the sections have been filled andthe level in the drum reaches the pipe-9, thus indicating 'that the boiler has been filled. The pet.-

coek may then be closed and the fire started.'

The water will in this manner overlll) While certain features of the present in-l vention are more or less specifically illusmanufacturer may trated, I wish it understood that various changes in form and proportion may be resorted to within thescope ofthe appended claims, similarly' that the materials and finish of the several parts employed may be such as the experience and judgment of the dictate or various uses may demand.

It should also be understood that the sections are identical in constrution and as such are interchangeable and reversible; this being of further importance as it eliminates the manufacture of so-called 'right and left hand sections.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a water tube generator of the character described, a water tube section comprising a pair of header tubes, the lower end of one header being bent, extended and connected with the lower end of the' other header and the upper end of the last named header being bent, extended and connected with the upper end of the lirst named header, said extended header tubes forming the upper and lower tubes of a section, and

a plurality of tubes interposed between said tubes and connected at their respective ends tothe header tubes.

l 2. In a water tube generator of the character described, a water tube section comprising. a pair of header tubes, the lower end of one header being bent, extended and welded to the lower end of the other header, andthe upper end of the last named header being bent, extended and welded to the upper end of the rstnamed header, said extended header tubes forming the upper and lower tubes of a section, and said tubes being inclined with relation to the respective header tubes, and aplurality of inclined tubes vinterposed between said upper and lower tubes and welded at their respective ends to the header tubes.

3. A water tube generator -of the character described comprising a pair of side frames, a combined steam and water drum longitudinally and centrally disposed in said frame, a plurality of tube sections disposed below 'the drum, the tubes in each section being inclined and each alternate section being inclined in an opposite direction, a pair of water drums disposed in parallelism with the rst named drum and arranged below the tube sections and connected therewith, a steam inlet pipe disposed on each side of the first named drum, said pipes being connected and communicating with the interior of the drum, a flexible, expansible connection between each water tube section and the respective steam pipes, and a guide in the main frame engaging the upper end of each water tube section, said lguides maintaining a fixed spacing between the water tube sections and permitting free endwise expansion of each water tube section.

4. In a generator of the character described a pair of side frames, an upper bar on each side frame, a series of interspaced slots formed therein, and oppositely inclined water tube sections thereby.

5. In a generator of the character described, the combination with the lower water drums, the combined steam and water drum, and the frame supporting the same, of a plurality of water tube sections interposed between the lower water drums and the upper combined steam and water drum, said sections vvbeing alternately inclined in opposite directions, and the upper end of each ser-tion extending through the frame and said frame being slotted to permit the sections to extend therethrough, whereby a spacing is maintained between the sections and free endwise expansion is permitted.

6. Ina generator of the character described, the combination with the lower water drums, the combined steam and' water drum, and the frame supporting the same, of a plurality of water tube sections interposed between the lower water drums and the upper combined steam and water drum, said sections being alternately inclined in opposite directions, and the upper end of each section extending through the frame and said frame' being slotted to permit the sections to extend therethrough, whereby a spacing is maintained between the sections and free endwise expansion is permitted, a steam inlet pipe on each side of the combined inlet and water drum and communicating with the interior of said drum, and an expansible connection formed between the upper end of each section and the respective steam inlet pipes.

WILLIAM E. TRAVERS. 

